Friday, March 22, 2013

“A non-violent
construction of gender identity must include not only female liberation, but
also total transformation of gender in society. A new masculinity.” Mónica
Zelaquette

With the topic of gun
control at the forefront of national debate, now is a critical time to push for
a holistic reform of our national strategy for reducing violence. There has
been a positive swing in the media and among legislators from a debate solely
focused on enforcement and incarceration, to one including the topic of violence
prevention. We must demand violence prevention efforts be focused on
community-based organizations that take a holistic approach to reducing
violence in their own communities.

Mónica Zelaquette from the
Center for Prevention of Violence (CEPREV) in Managua, Nicaragua warns that
strategies for violence prevention must not only work to get young people off
the street, but also address the root of violence in our society.
Transformation of gender norms, Mónica agues, must be central to any approach
for reducing violence. She insists that the transformation of gender identity
must not only be characterized by female liberation, but also a new
masculinity.

Mónica is highly critical
of the U.S.' strategy for combatting drug trafficking. The "mano
duro" or strong handed policies employed by the U.S. for addressing drug
trafficking both domestically and internationally, she attest, both models and
perpetuates traditional gender construction.

While military
intervention in many other countries in the region has left thousands dead and
even more displaced, Nicaragua remains the safest country in region. Mónica,
who has been working in the field of violence prevention since the end of
Nicaragua's revolutionary period, affirms that the efforts of organizations
like CEPREV have been far more effective in reducing violence than the U.S.
sponsored "War on Drugs."

Since its inception in
1997, CEPREV has seen violence drastically decreased in the 36 neighborhoods of
Managua where they have focused their programming. Militarization has not been
successful in reducing drug trafficking, but CEPREV's workshops and simple colorful
manual have inspired hundreds of young men to leave drug trafficking and gang
membership behind. Organizations like CEPREV have proven that the ‘war against
drugs’ cannot rely on bullets.

In many communities, both
in Nicaragua and the United States, being born into a male body is dangerous.
Young boys have it drilled into them by family, schools, and even political
propaganda that they must be tough, emotionless, never lose, never cry, and
never show weakness. The number of men who die a year defending their
‘manliness’ can't be quantified, but Mónica often sites that for every woman
who dies a violent death, seven men die every year. A recent program produced
by National Public Radio's This American Life tells the story of a school in
Chicago whose male students are identified as part of their neighborhood gang
no matter their participation in the activity of the gang. The fact that their
house is located on a certain street makes them a target for opposing groups.
These aspects aren't only evident in gang culture, Mónica argues, they are
enforced and perpetuated by the authoritarian family, school, and government.

CEPREV’s model addresses
the influences of patriarchy at every level, from the nuclear family, to the
national government. The backbone of the organization is the groups of
non-violence promoters they have helped to form in each neighborhood. The
promoters work closely with psychologists to facilitate workshops in the
community and mediate between small street gangs. Many of the promoters are
members of the Movement of Young People for Peace Leaving Behind Violence,
whose formation was facilitated by CEPREV. The movement is made up of former
gang members who have decided to put down their weapons and are now
non-violence promoters in their own neighborhoods.

Another essential part of
the CEPREV methodology is training "multipliers" or teachers, police officers,
and community leaders who not only need to be aware of the effects of
patriarchy on their own formation, but also can work to change these norms
through their interactions with community members. Finally Mónica is very
active in doing what she calls political advocacy, or facilitating workshops
with political leaders and high-up gang members all across Central America. She
is known for bringing the most stone faced generals and state functionaries to
tears when reflecting on the emotions they had held due to their understanding
that to express emotions would make them less of a man. She attests that her
involvement with the department of defense and police of El Salvador played an
important role in facilitating the recent truce between gangs in El Salvador.
Though it is impossible to quantify precisely the violence that CEPREV has
prevented, Mónica and her coworkers have witnessed drastic transformations in the
communities with which they work.

What would happen if U.S.
Drug Policy makers invested in a war against the root causes of violence?

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